Note: Some stories have been translated by this website for the benefit of its users. Sources and authors of news stories provided.

Communicado de Imprensa:ASSINATURA DE ACORDO

December 4th, 2008 / Gabriel Fossati-Bellani

• A Emabaixada do Reino dos países Baixos e a Fundação Lurdes Mutola assinam o acordo de financiamento que tem como objectivo o alargamento e expansão do projecto Desporto da Vida para a provívcia de Nampula, Distritos de
• O Projecto Desporto da Vida é um programa apoiado pelo Governo Moçambicano e implementado pela Fundação Lurdes Mutola em paraceria com as instituições locais de Juventude e Desportos nos distritos alvos.
• O Programa Desporto da Vida está orçado em EUR 700.000,00 (equivalente a 22.800.000,00MT), e no âmbito do acordo a Emabixada do Reino dos Países Baixos contribuirá com EUR 200.000,00 para os anos 2009 a 2011 no projecto, dedicados a expanção do programa para a província de Nampula. Este projecto conta com parceiros financeiros como a Oxfam Novib que contribui com EUR 400.000,00 e o Governo de Moçambique no âmbito do Orçamento de apoio a Fundação Lurdes Mutola através do Fundo de Promoção Desportiva.

• Com o apoio da Oxfam Novib a Fundação Lurdes Mutola implementou a primeira e segunda fase do projecto Desporto da Vida entre 2006 e 2007, que focalizou no desenho do mecanismo de formação, criação e publicvação do manual Craque, implementação de actividades de testagem em Namacha e Gurue e utilização prática do manual para a actividade de educação através da prática do desporto.
• O projeto pretende expandir as atividades da Fase I e II, fornecendo treinadores com as habilidades para realizar formação orientadas para a formação do desportista “role model”; ou como se diz em Moçambique: um Craque. Esta nova fase vai cobrir o resto do distrito Gurue e mais dois mais distritos na Província de Zambézia e ainda mais dois distritos na Província de Nampula.
• O manual inclui temas essenciais, tais como: futebol, habilidades, capacidades de comunicação, uma vida saudável, prevenção da drogas e HIV / SIDA. Estes temas fazem o necessário para tornar-se um tudo-em torno de jogador: um Craque dentro e fora do campo.
• Durante a primeira fase do programa DDV foram formados e treinados 24 formadores e apoiados para criar os novos craques; para que possam levar a cabo actividades de desporto na comunidade.
• Tendo o Desporto como um instrumento de desenvolvimento, e também, bo âmbito do vasto programa de apoio para o desenvolvimento deste belo Pais, a Embaixada do Reino dos Países Baixos decidiu fazer uma contribuição singela, mas importante para que as actividades deste projecto atinjam, de forma gradual, mais gente nos Distritos de Moçambique, contribuindo deste modo para o melhor desenvolvimento local..

First meeting of foundations in Mozambique

November 7th, 2008 / Foundation

Source: Alliance Magazine

Thirteen foundations, including six international ones, participated in national meetings of foundations in Mozambique in July and September, the first meetings of this kind in the country.

The July meeting was convened by the Lurdes Mutola Foundation (FLM) and the Foundation for Community Development (FDC). The Synergos Institute identified Rebecca Raposo, a member of Synergos’ Senior Fellows Network from Brazil, to prepare the agenda as well as facilitate the meeting. Synergos has played a long-standing role in the capacity-building of Mozambique’s philanthropic sector, and its Senior Fellows have provided technical assistance to this and other innovative initiatives that are building partnerships to address poverty and social injustice.

Opportunities for exchanging knowledge and experiences are much needed in Mozambique, given the weak tradition of philanthropy and the dominant ‘learn as you go’ approach to grantmaking, but few Mozambican foundations had previously participated in such forums. In the course of the meeting, the participating foundations realized that they were not isolated – many had not realized so many foundations were active in Mozambique. They were able to identify common goals and values, which they saw as a first step towards joint action in the future. They also discussed the opportunities for establishing a permanent working group and its potential impact on the foundation sector in Mozambique.

AFS and FLM Sign one-year Memorandum

November 3rd, 2008 / Gabriel Fossati-Bellani / Foundation

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(l-r) Bongani and Bert of AFS and Macame and Felcidade of the Foundation exchanging memorandums at the FLM’s head office in Maputo on November 7th. The YES program will send five Mozambican students to study for one year in the USA in 2009.

Mozambique laments low percentage of women students

October 8th, 2008

Source: AFP

Maputo, Mozambique - Mozambique’s Professional Education Reform Executive Commission Monday lamented the low proportion of women students and teachers in Mozambique’s professional education institutions.

The report of a study on the gender situation in five out of the 16 institutions covered by a pilot phase of the professional education reform, showed that 80 per cent of the students are male and only 20 per cent female.

According to Eugenia Rodriguez, of the consultative group that carried out the study, among the reasons for this imbalance was that only a small number of girls meet the requirements for entering for professional education training.

However, there is also an alleged lack of interest among girls for professional studies, linked to gender stereotypes in the family, while on a practical level, housing for girl students is described as “precarious”.

“There are socio-cultural factors that determine the poor participation of girls and women, such as the reproductive role that is socially linked to women, or the perception that technical and professional specialisms such as electricity, welding or mechanic are for men, because women are destined for domestic chores,” Rodriguez said.

On educational performance, girls on professional courses have high drop-out and failure rates, because of premature marriages, discrimination, even in the class room and sexual harassment by teachers.

The study concluded that the number of women teachers in professional education had scarcely increased between 2005 and 2007.

“Only 20 per cent of the teachers in the professional schools and institutes and 14 per cent in the training centres, are women”, said Rodriguez.

Likewise, when it comes to management positions, over three quarters of these positions in the professional training institutions are held by men.

Perhaps even worse is the bias against women graduates from professional education.

The study found that women graduates had much greater difficulty in obtaining jobs than their male counterparts; it blamed this partly on “lack of motivation”, but also said there were few apprenticeships for women in industrial companies and that many companies are simply reluctant to hire women.

The study called for material incentives that would attract more girls into professional education, which could include improved accommodation, free school equipment and exemption from enrollment fees.

Mutola to bow out at Zurich athletics meeting

August 28th, 2008 / Lurdes Mutola

Source: AFP

ZURICH (AFP) — Maria Mutola will call time on her illustrious running career at Friday’s Golden League meeting here, giving way to a new batch of athletes including Kenya’s Olympic teenage champion Pamela Jelimo.

The 35-year-old 800m runner from Mozambique, who earlier this month competed in her sixth Olympic Games and her fifth final, was adamant that there would be no comebacks.

“My last race will be here in Zurich,” she said.

“I have won 12 times in Zurich and I have also stayed here in Switzerland for training.

“It’s a good place to run my last international race.

“It would be even better to set a personal or seasonal best here,” she said, adding: “I will probably do some more domestic races.”

One highlight of Mutola’s long career was the 12 successive victories she recorded at the Weltklasse from 1993-2004, making her a highly popular figure when she appears before the capacity 26,000 crowd at the Letzigrund Stadium.

But she will be up against newly-minted Olympic champion Jelimo on Friday, with Russian Svetlana Klyuka - who finished fourth in the Beijing Games 800m final, one place ahead of Mutola - acting as pacemaker.

Jelimo’s 1:54.87 in the Chinese capital was a new world junior record and also a time that bettered Mutola’s African record, which the Mozambiquean had also improved eight times during her career.

“Of course, Jelimo’s time surprised me,” said Mutola. “1:54 is a very fast time.

“I was surprised to see someone run so fast but records are here to be broken.”

She added: “The first time I saw Jelimo was at the African championships in Addis Ababa this year.”

Mutola, a star soccer player in her youth who was schooled in Eugene, Oregon, thanks to a bursary from the Olympic Solidarity Committee, was praised by Jelimo as an athlete to admire.

“Mutola is a great athlete who has done great things and achieved very good results,” said the Kenyan teenager.

Mutola has achieved many feats since bowing out in the heats of the 800m at the 1988 Seoul Games, her first Olympic experience.

The record seven-time world indoor 800m champion is also a two-time Commonwealth champion and three-time world outdoor gold medallist.

She medalled twice in her five other Olympic forays, winning gold in Sydney in 2000 and bronze four years earlier in Atlanta.

She has also picked up a brace of silver and bronze medals at the world outdoor and indoor championships, along with a Commonwealth bronze in Melbourne in 2006.